A goal, of sorts
One of the things I like most about Ireland would be the irish people's ability to be comfortable in their own skin. I'm not sure if that says what I need so I'll explain. When I visited in 2002 for three months, the first thing I did was run out and join a gym. I hadn't worked out for 6 months since I'd been traveling and I needed to. I was the heaviest I'd ever been when I lived here - mostly because I LOVE chips (big fat french fries, only better) and I love beer. I went to the gym day in and day out but didn't make much of a dent, I'm afraid...
At that time, I noticed, there weren't a lot of gyms to choose from in the area near M's house. Gym going didn't seem to an all-consuming passion like it could be in the Bay Area (I thought I'd narrow it down to where I lived, since I couldn't speak for all of America). The pub life prevailed, weekends filled with drinking pints or mixed drinks, pub food consisting of a variety of things usually served with 2 servings of potatoes (chips and boiled, chips and roasted, chips and baked... you get the picture). Even the salad isn't like we think about at home, usually a bit of lettuce with a few different types - potato salad, cole slaw, pasta salad - something with mayo involved usually. I'd say losing weight was an uphill battle.
Fast forward, I'm here now. Gyms are picking up speed. I joined a gorgeous brand new gym, each piece of cardio equipment has a flat screen TV in front of it. You just plug in your earplugs and watch your episode of Oprah or Dr Phil or whatever. It's nice. And it's busy. Not early in the morning like my gym in Mountain View (5am there was a group of us and it picked up steadily before 8am) but during the afternoon and evenings. Gym going has boomed. It's great. Still, the average Irish woman's body isn't a size 2, that's for sure. It's obvious that the chips are still being consumed, the beer or drinks on the weekend. But women here seem a lot more comfortable with their bellies than we would be at home. They actually flaunt 'em here. Even my yoga instructor, who used to be a professional dancer, has a belly. I'm used to my yoga instructors at home being thin. It's actually nice to see someone 'normal' teaching you.
So anyhow, I've been kind of enjoying life, you might say, as far as the eating thing goes. I noticed I was getting a little belly and it's easy to let it go. I'm always bundled in warm clothes and hardly ever see my body. Warm, rich food is what you want when you are cold. A yummy Bailey's coffee is perfect on a chilly night (ouch on the Baileys AND the cream involved there).
Even before I came here, well.. I'm getting on 37 and I weigh 176lb and every year I probably gain a pound.. can you imagine how big I'll be when I'm 47, or when we finally decide to have kids? Still, I have an athletic build so I may or may not carry it off well. I don't know. The problem is I can't tell if I'm getting too big. Friends never tell you you might want to watch your weight. Like I'm not uncomfortable with my body, I'm happy with it, but I just don't want to get out of control.
I've gone back to something I learned last year from a nutritionist I went to. I've started eating only when I'm hungry. I'm sure you're laughing saying, 'well, duh' but the truth is I love food. If I have some food that I love, I want to eat a lot of it. (don't we all?) I grew up finishing everything on my plate, my mom was into that. So, I'm used to eating what I have, instead of what I need. So I'm trying to eat only when I'm hungry but then, I can eat what I want. Just not a ton of it. Just until I'm comfortably full. I'm supposed to be 'more aware' of what I'm eating so I can't eat in front of the TV either. Because I can't eat until I'm hungry, I've found that I try harder to balance things, eat more fruit that sort of thing. Because if a little cookie can fill me, I'm screwed and can't eat again until I'm hungry. ;)
Needless to say, it's going to be a bit of a challenge. I don't want to be obsessive and hopefully I won't be. Obviously, it'll be easier when M is out of town since I won't be eating meals with him. The challenge will be when he's here and I'm cooking for us, when he asks me if i want some ice cream when we are sitting on the couch watching tv, when we want to go out with friends. I'm making it my goal though. Most definitely for this length of time before my trip to Maui (bikini time) but hopefully I will do it long enough that it will become a habit. Because I feel that a change is in the air for me. I have to start now.
At that time, I noticed, there weren't a lot of gyms to choose from in the area near M's house. Gym going didn't seem to an all-consuming passion like it could be in the Bay Area (I thought I'd narrow it down to where I lived, since I couldn't speak for all of America). The pub life prevailed, weekends filled with drinking pints or mixed drinks, pub food consisting of a variety of things usually served with 2 servings of potatoes (chips and boiled, chips and roasted, chips and baked... you get the picture). Even the salad isn't like we think about at home, usually a bit of lettuce with a few different types - potato salad, cole slaw, pasta salad - something with mayo involved usually. I'd say losing weight was an uphill battle.
Fast forward, I'm here now. Gyms are picking up speed. I joined a gorgeous brand new gym, each piece of cardio equipment has a flat screen TV in front of it. You just plug in your earplugs and watch your episode of Oprah or Dr Phil or whatever. It's nice. And it's busy. Not early in the morning like my gym in Mountain View (5am there was a group of us and it picked up steadily before 8am) but during the afternoon and evenings. Gym going has boomed. It's great. Still, the average Irish woman's body isn't a size 2, that's for sure. It's obvious that the chips are still being consumed, the beer or drinks on the weekend. But women here seem a lot more comfortable with their bellies than we would be at home. They actually flaunt 'em here. Even my yoga instructor, who used to be a professional dancer, has a belly. I'm used to my yoga instructors at home being thin. It's actually nice to see someone 'normal' teaching you.
So anyhow, I've been kind of enjoying life, you might say, as far as the eating thing goes. I noticed I was getting a little belly and it's easy to let it go. I'm always bundled in warm clothes and hardly ever see my body. Warm, rich food is what you want when you are cold. A yummy Bailey's coffee is perfect on a chilly night (ouch on the Baileys AND the cream involved there).
Even before I came here, well.. I'm getting on 37 and I weigh 176lb and every year I probably gain a pound.. can you imagine how big I'll be when I'm 47, or when we finally decide to have kids? Still, I have an athletic build so I may or may not carry it off well. I don't know. The problem is I can't tell if I'm getting too big. Friends never tell you you might want to watch your weight. Like I'm not uncomfortable with my body, I'm happy with it, but I just don't want to get out of control.
I've gone back to something I learned last year from a nutritionist I went to. I've started eating only when I'm hungry. I'm sure you're laughing saying, 'well, duh' but the truth is I love food. If I have some food that I love, I want to eat a lot of it. (don't we all?) I grew up finishing everything on my plate, my mom was into that. So, I'm used to eating what I have, instead of what I need. So I'm trying to eat only when I'm hungry but then, I can eat what I want. Just not a ton of it. Just until I'm comfortably full. I'm supposed to be 'more aware' of what I'm eating so I can't eat in front of the TV either. Because I can't eat until I'm hungry, I've found that I try harder to balance things, eat more fruit that sort of thing. Because if a little cookie can fill me, I'm screwed and can't eat again until I'm hungry. ;)
Needless to say, it's going to be a bit of a challenge. I don't want to be obsessive and hopefully I won't be. Obviously, it'll be easier when M is out of town since I won't be eating meals with him. The challenge will be when he's here and I'm cooking for us, when he asks me if i want some ice cream when we are sitting on the couch watching tv, when we want to go out with friends. I'm making it my goal though. Most definitely for this length of time before my trip to Maui (bikini time) but hopefully I will do it long enough that it will become a habit. Because I feel that a change is in the air for me. I have to start now.
posted by grrltraveler at Wednesday, January 26, 2005
5 Comments:
I was watching a show (Oprah maybe?) where a French woman was on and she talked about how they stay so thin. She said that they only eat three bites of anything. Push the rest away.
I'm intrigued by that idea.
Lesseee.... three bites of chocolate cake, then three bites of potatoe with sour cream and bacon, then three bites of mounds bar.
Yeah- that'd work! ;)
lol at RG's comment.
I'm a boredom eater. I munch and munch. So I stopped eating out of bags or snack boxes. I put a couple handfuls into a bowl and when that's empty that's IT!
And altho I'll do takeout from restaurants, I find my stomach turning at fast food.
It's hard, tho, because with my dietary restrictions, I end up eating a lot of carbs just because it's practically all I can have.
But you're more active than I am. I'm in awe. ;)
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Well, you know. I have a lot of time on my hands so I do workout a lot currently! ;)
And I like RG's idea as well.. I mean, that's really the basic idea. The problem being, can you stop after only 3 bites? LOL
S, I'll post about the house next time.. :)
a
Don't know about you gals, but if I take one bite, I'm eating the whole thing. I have to skip buying cakes, cookies, soda, and alcohol for the most part. That stuff gets ordered as a treat when I go out to eat.
Of course, A, if you did have kids, you'd be expending all your energy chasing after them... not to mention that if you nurse, most people I knew developed some pretty healthy eating habits during that time. And say goodbye to eating out in fancy restaurants for a while. Now that I think about it, my mom didn't start packing on the pounds until AFTER we left the house! LOL.
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